Yesterday the Centre in New Delhi moved to ensure that there would be female officers available at every one of the city's 180 police stations—specifically, two female sub-inspectors and 10 constables per station—resulting in the upcoming recruit of an additional 2,508 women to the Delhi police force. All oft the states will be replicating this gender-breakdown figure in law enforcement, which evens out to 33% female cops.

The adjustment in police staffing was obviously inspired by the outcry over the December 16th gang rape and subsequent death of a 23-year-old woman who has come to represent India's rape epidemic. The idea is that with more female officers, women complainants will feel safer reporting sexual attacks and their reports won't be undermined or dismissed as they have in the past, a blatant violation of justice that's gone unchecked for years.

A number of protests sprang up in front of New Delhi police headquarters, Parliament and a major…
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Said Home secretary K.R. Singh, "Beginning has to be made. We have to build infrastructure for women's safety. We have to ensure dignity of life." He also plans to put a three-month limit on the investigation every sexual assault complaint, because "Justice delayed is justice denied."

After a day-long meeting with directors of police spent discussing how to prevent similar crimes against women, Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde told the press that he had sent proposal to the finance ministry for clearance. He added that all involved hope that they can implement the new policy right away, sans the usual red tape rigamarole, given the urgent and tragic circumstances.